5 Month Old Sleep Suggestions

J.,
My son has been going through the exact same thing! He's 5 months and 3 weeks. He used to be a great sleeper and then we traveled quite a bit at the end of the summer. So I thought that's what threw his schedule off and he'd be back in it soon. However that never happened. I even went to the doctor to see if he had an ear infection. They said he was healthy and that he's just going through the stage where he's more aware of his surroundings. So he's probably startling himself when he wakes up at night and he realizes he's alone. I think he now rolls over at night too which is causing some issues. Either he can't figure out how to roll back over or he's startling himself so bad he can't get back to sleep.

I've heard from many other mother's who have said their child went through the same thing at this age. So it's probably not what you want to hear but it's probably a phase and she'll grow out of it. That's what I'm hoping for. If you get any other good advice or find something that works let me know since I'd like to hear it as well. Good luck to you!

A.

Hi, J.! Doesn't it just stink that you get a routine going and then they change it?! My son is 7 1/2 months and has been doing basically the same thing. At 5 1/2 months, I'm sure someone has said this already, but she may be beginning her 6 month growth spurt, which we found out can last weeks...Argh. My son grew and teethed at the same time--it was awful and we just had to get through it; there wasn't much we could do. When he's not teething or in pain, we have been doing a combination cry-it-out and Ferber method (where you go in and soothe them every so often), and our guy really does go to sleep better if we just leave him in the crib and let him cry. He usually only cries for 15 minutes max, whether it's going down for a nap, bedtime or going back to bed after he's woken in the middle of the night. I make sure everything else is taken care of: diaper, milk, etc. Then if he's crying, I know it's because he wants to be with us, not that he's uncomfortable or hungry. When he gets up the first time at night and drinks 4 oz. of milk, I know he woke because he's hungry. Then if he wakes 45 minutes or an hour later, he's not waking because he's hungry. So last night, we waited him out and after a few minutes he cried himself back to sleep. The other suggestions I've heard (and haven't yet tried them but am planning on it VERY soon--working full time and getting up twice or three times/ night is awful) are to give them less and less milk for the second feeding each night (transition them off of eating at that time), give pacifier instead, soothe and put back in the crib. Or have Daddy go down instead of you; then she doesn't expect milk. Let us know what you try and what happens--we need more sleep! All the best,
L.

Hi J.: We went through/are going through a similar thing with our daughter, who is now 7 1/2 months old. I've heard that at 5 mos many babies start to get interrupted sleep for various reasons. You could try Elizabeth Pantley's No Cry Sleep Solution. I am just starting now. It is a gentle approach to helping babies sleep. It may take some time, but hopefully with consistency it will help. Good Luck.

Hi J.,

I browsed through your other responses and I agree with what the others have written. I don't think that I saw this, though: at 5 1/2 months, she could be beginning a growth spurt and therefore wants to nurse more often--especially during what were those longer times away during the night. You may have already ruled this out, but it is a possibility. If this is it, then she will do this for a while until she gets your supply even greater, and then (hopefully) go back to what you had before. Anyway, I would keep this in the back of our mind as you try some of the sleep solutions offered. Good luck with getting some sleep soon. :-)

Hi J.,

You don't mention, but do you think she is really hungry at 10, or is she just having a snack or wanting a cuddle? Maybe you could try either putting her back to bed when she wakes at 10 without a feeding or trying to get her to have a complete nursing and see if either gets her to sleep longer? I would also recommmend Healthy Sleep, Happy Baby by Dr. Mark Weisbluth. He really explains the function of food and sleep. His advice really helped me getting my son through the transitions to longer sleep/less nursing at night. Good luck!

C.

If the cereal isn't helping the sleep issue could it be giving her a belly ache and causing her to wake up? If she has problems with gas it might be too much for her right now. What kind of cereal are you feeding her? At about 6 months babies go through another growth spurt and need to nurse more often to accomodate that. The teething is also going to impact her sleep schedule. She might also not really be "eating" but just needing the comfort that nursing brings her. Try Camilla Teething Tablets by Hylands. They are a homeopathic remedy for teething that works really well. She might get some relief and sleep longer if teething is causing the non sleep issue.

my son did that until he was 9 months old - I was going crazy - the peditrician told me give him water when he wakes - then he will think why am I getting up for this ?? i thought she was crazy - but within a week it worked and he finally slept through the night.

he also started teething at 3 months and by 12 months had 12 teeth in his mouth! the teething definately affected his nursing, and was quite painful, so good old ora-gel or let him gnaw on a frozen facecloth ... good luck and SWEET DREAMS

My 6 month old does the exact same thing! He went from sleeping 7 hours to maybe 4 if I'm lucky, then he's up every hour and a half for the rest of the night. He nurses then goes right back to sleep, he started doing this about a month ago. He used to go to bed around 8:30 and now I'm struggling to keep him up past 7:30. He also eats cereal throughout the day but that hasn't changed his sleeping habits. I'm hoping this is just a growth spurt. I wish you luck with getting some well deserved sleep.

I know you said you just started cereal recently, so I'm not sure how fast you want to introduce other foods, but my son (now 7 mths) had the same problem. He used to sleep almost all nite waking only once or twice to nurse, then around 5 months started waking 3-5 times a nite. It wasn't until we started him on solids at dinner time that he slept longer at nite. Now at 7 mths, we give him cereal around 11am, then solids 1-2 times between 2pm and 6pm and he usually only wakes once to nurse at nite.

So I would suggest maybe giving your baby cereal twice a day, or trying solids in the next week or two. Not sure if it'll help...but it worked on my son.

Good luck!

growth spurt.. it will pass within a few weeks hang in there! if it desn't call your pediatrician.

Hi J. - I don't have a magic cure for you, but I have been where you are! My youngest is 15 months old now, and she was a colicky baby until 4 months and a restless sleeper for basically her whole first year. She would go down around 7:30 and we could set our watch by her waking up by 9:30, needing to be held and comforted. She also ate a full bottle during the night until she was about 11 months old, believe it or not! Your baby must still need the milk during the night, but perhaps not as often as she is eating. You might try not nursing when she wakes up at 10. Try a pacifier (I'm sure you have already), a little water in a bottle, or just pick her up and cuddle a little and hope she gets drowsy again. These are all things we did with our youngest until she finally broke that feeding habit, then we just fed her in the 2 - 3 a.m. range. It was still awful getting up in the middle of the night, and I work full-time too, so I know what you are going through!! But, it was easier to deal with one time of her getting up rather than a whole bunch. As she got bigger and more advanced with the solids, that helped her sleep better too. She is still the kind of baby who needs to be picked up and held for a few minutes many nightsif she wakes up and can't get back to sleep. She just wants to know we are nearby! Your baby might be like this too. Good luck and remember to try as many things as you can until you find what works for you all! It will get better!

Hi J.,
Have you tried changing her napping schedule during the day? I'm just wondering if maybe when she wakes up she's not hungry, just not tired. If now she's doing 3 naps (I'm just guessing from what I remember about that age) then maybe she might be ready to go to 2 naps. There were times when my daughter would wake up in the middle of the night and instead of automatically feeding her, I would just kind of make her laugh a little and then put her back in her crib and she'd fall right back asleep. I realize that might not work with every baby, but somehow it worked for us and she was almost always sleeping through the night by about 3 1/2 months and from that point on, never needed to eat during the night again (again, could just be luck on our part).
You mentioned that you started doing cereal at night. I don't know how much you're giving her, but if it's just a little, you could try giving her more or adding some other foods during the day to start to get her on a 3 "meal" a day schedule along with nursing. That can definitely help with sleeping.
From my experiences, Tylenol doesn't help with sleep at all. I used to give it to my daughter when she was teething or when I thought she was teething but I'm pretty sure she was only soothed because of the taste because right after I gave it to her, she would fall back asleep and it can't possibly take away pain that fast. I would try Orajel if you think she's uncomfortable.
I hope I've given you something that might help. I wish you luck and restful nights!

Hi J.,

I agree with the other responses.. maybe adjusting nap times during the day or giving more cereal at night if your only giving a little. Also, the trying the pacifier 1st instead of nursing her. She may be going through a growth spurt where her body needs more food as well through the night. Have you tried pushing her bed time back a little later... Maybe she'll sleep a little longer before her next wake. When she wakes up at night, does she just fuss or is she really crying? I know sometimes I'll hear my son wake up in the monitor but he'll just be moving about & kinda of giving out whines but I won't get up unless he is really crying. I know it's hard & I don't really think that crying it ok is the best thing.. but maybe for 5-8 mins & see if she's getting more tired or is she's getting more angry? She may just want you as soon as she wakes up but isn't really hungry. Also, do you put her into her crib at night when she's still awake or does she fall asleep rocking/nursing? My pedi suggested at this age to put the babies in bed while they're just begining to fall asleep so they know where they are when they wake up in the middle of the night & don't expect to wake up on you where she fell asleep. I know that's hard sometimes because my son almost always falls asleep with his last bottle but he does fine (I'm very lucky!!)
anyways- hope your munchin starts sleeping better for you!

H.